Obama deeply impressive on '60 Minutes' about Bin Laden mission

President Obama was measured, cool and reflective in his '60 Minutes' appearance on Sunday night , giving credit where credit is due but also showing a flinty side that is usually hidden.

He was discussing the Bin Laden killing of course and at the end of the interview he flashed anger when asked about people who do not believe Bin Laden should have been killed, sparked by numerous articles in the European press denouncing the loss of life.

Such people should have their heads examined said Obama with a glint in his eye we don't see often in public.

We forget some times just how hard-nosed this man must be to come from relative obscurity as an African American and become president of the United States.

Based on this interview and the accounts of the decision making around the raid I think we have chosen wisely with this president.

He described in depth the real life decisions he had to make about whether to pursue what he rated as 55-45 percentage call on whether Bin Laden was in the Pakistan compound.

This was not the easy rhetoric of "dead or alive' or chest pounding but an incredibly serious decision about whether to enter another sovereign country, shoot up a compound leaving many dead and get out safely.

What was clear was that he planned for every eventuality which is what any good leader will do.

Asked about the downed helicopter in the early moments of the mission he said a contingency had been agreed which made it possible to continue.

The fact that he went through a full schedule of weekend events knowing what was in store for him that Sunday was an incredible balancing act.

How he managed to visit hurricane victims, go to a shuttle launch that was postponed, speak at a White House correspondent's dinner, make a graduation address in Florida, all the time knowing that his entire presidency likely rested on whether the Osama mission was a success was amazing.

This young president also put in context the inanity of the furore over birth certificates and such nonsense when he described his greatest fear all that week was of losing some of the incredibly brave special forces who took part in the mission.That is the stuff of American history and split second decision making.